I decided to bring my younger son to my tmj dr. to have an evaluation before I make decisions regarding his orthodontic care.

I had to call his dentist for xrays to be forwarded. All the receptionist kept saying is "But he is not an orthodontist. But he isn't an orthodontist." I know for a fact that my tmj dentist does do ortho work, and I trust his opinion way above anyone else at this point. I know if my son needs work, and my tmj dr does it, that he won't have tmj problems in the future.

Anyone else run across this type of attitude. My former dentist was pulling attitude about tmj back in May. Aren't all dentist on the same page?

I decided to bring my younger son to my tmj dr. to have an evaluation before I make decisions regarding his orthodontic care.

I had to call his dentist for xrays to be forwarded. All the receptionist kept saying is "But he is not an orthodontist. But he isn't an orthodontist." I know for a fact that my tmj dentist does do ortho work, and I trust his opinion way above anyone else at this point. I know if my son needs work, and my tmj dr does it, that he won't have tmj problems in the future.

Anyone else run across this type of attitude. My former dentist was pulling attitude about tmj back in May. Aren't all dentist on the same page?

Hey C! How are you doing? I'm glad you are bringing your kids to a tmjd orthodontist. All dentists do things differently, and they are for sure not on the same page as far as tmj prevention. It's very wise on your part to keep doing what you are doing for your son. Usually orthos that are concerned with tmj, and they all should be, take great care in doing x-rays beforehand to see if you have a predisposition to tmj, and will take them before and during treatment. This subject is the primary reason why I got tmj in the first place, and I wonder how many other kids at the time had developed tmj like me because of extremely poor orthodontal work. Makes me sad to think about it. ----J.

Hi J! I'm doing not too bad today. How are things on your end? Any relief yet? If nothing else, at least as a parent we can say that everything we are going through now for is for a good reason - for the good of our kids (boy, the things we do for our children, eh?!?). That is not to say that our parents made bad decisions, because they did the best they could with the knowledge they had at the time. But we know better now to research and look at the whole picture.

I had the chance to speak to a another therapist, and she said that before she got more training in her field, she was treating clients with tmj. Then when she learned more about the disorder, she realized that her earlier treatments may not have been the most effective treatment. Her clients improved, but she realized that there is a much better way to achieve the same result.

I'm really anxious to see what my dr has to say about my son. The dr. was saying that many, many issues can be helped with proper orthodontics. For example, he was saying that some kids with ADD/ADHD could possibly be misdiagnosed. Sometimes, when the child can't breath at night (because of allergies, because of an arch issue in the mouth pushing the airways closed, whatever reason I am sure there are 100's), it can cause the child not to get a good night's sleep. How do children react to improper sleep....? Yup, like my kids, they get hyper! Night after night, and it becomes an issue at home, at school. So the child is taken to the dr. and gets pills for ADHD. But the real issue is never investigated and treated.

I just wish that all drs and dentists would get with the program. Sometimes the drs are just so territorial, it doesn't do the patients any good.

I decided to bring my younger son to my tmj dr. to have an evaluation before I make decisions regarding his orthodontic care.

I had to call his dentist for xrays to be forwarded. All the receptionist kept saying is "But he is not an orthodontist. But he isn't an orthodontist." I know for a fact that my tmj dentist does do ortho work, and I trust his opinion way above anyone else at this point. I know if my son needs work, and my tmj dr does it, that he won't have tmj problems in the future.

Anyone else run across this type of attitude. My former dentist was pulling attitude about tmj back in May. Aren't all dentist on the same page?

Can you not just go and get them yourself?
When I moved all over the country I had a hard time getting my records because I didnt even know who they were going to.
Orthodontists are not automatically TMJ doctors. With my own experience it was ortho's that messed me up because they deal more with cosmetic dentistry. I am going to sound like a broken record but you need to see a TMJ SPECIALIST. Ortho's are using 30-40 year old technology to treat this and my first splint was made by one. No dice. The second splint would have worked but I had nothing for pain management. The Dr. I am seeing now is a blessing. Specifically, TMJ Dr.s would know what to do.

What makes you suspect TMJ in your child? I don't think it's preventable because most of it occurs from accidents, bad dental work, etc. It's from an outside force. My bite was knocked off because of a poorly made crown.

Also I wouldn't jump to the ADD conclusion. Personally, I think it's one of the most overdiagnosed conditions out there. I think ADD is a gift when approached from the right angle (it's mental multitasking, I WANT THAT!)

Anyhoots I've said enough. I would get braces first and be very careful about dental work after that. Ive never heard of a younger child going through TMJ therapy and I don't know if it would be effective. You can message me and I'll give you the number of the people I see as they are an office full of GENIUSES.

Hi velvetrance. I'm not sure I was able to accurately explain why I want my son evaluated by the dentist who is doing my tmj treatment (by the way, he IS a TMJ SPECIALIST! The best in the province.). The dentist also has part of his practice devoted to orthodontics, so I trust that when he does ortho it also takes the whole structure into account, including the tm joint. I don't want my son to have to undergo tmj treatment when he is older because his orthodontist (who ever that may be) did not do a proper evaluation. I am trying to mitigate and prevent my son from issues, I don't believe at this point that he has tmj dysfunction.

My son does not have ADD, but my point was that for the children who were diagnosed with ADD, there may other issues at play. Yes, I agree that it is the most overdiagnosed issue, which leads me to believe that the rate of true ADD is not as high as the medical community is treating.

I am making the decisions that I feel are appropriate for my family, and I totally trust my dentist. I feel HE is a genius, and a godsend, and I totally trust his opinion.

Hi everyone, I just wanted to add my 2pence worth in direct response to the title of this thread "preventing TMD in children".

Speaking from my personal experince and the cause of my TMJD, which was by a forceps delivery at birth, I therefore believe that TMJD can be prevented in children for those who are born by forceps delivery as long as parents are informed of the risks beforehand.

When my Mother had me she didn't know of TMJD and neither did the midwives or obstetricians at the time, they simplye pulled me out, I had a few marks around my face but once they'd gone, as far as they were concerned I was a healthy baby. Little did they realise that the force of the forceps around my tiny head caused damage to the way my skull would grow over the years, affecting and causing damage to my TMJ.

So my advice ISN'T that every child born this way will have TMJD when older but that I strongly believe that every Mother should be made aware of the risks of such a delivery and therefore can take preventitve measures for their child by getting them assessed by cranial osteopaths to begin with to help with the corrct remoulding of the bones in the skull and face so that as they develop they will do so in the correct way.

Now I'm not a qulaiifed specialist so please don't shoot me down, I'm just offering my bit of advice in the hopes that it might help mothers of young children born this way. Apparently earaches and sore throats in childhood are a a typical symptom and sign that a TMJ problem will develop later in adult life.

HI all- I have to put my 2 cents in here.. Children can absolutely have a predisposition to tmjd. It is absolutely hereditary, and my 9 yr. old daughter is proof. My tmj specialist is a functional jaw ortho along with a sleep apnea specialist, and belongs to the American academy of cranio and orofacial pain associations. Some orthodontists are trained in treating tmjd, definitely not all, but the best ones in my opinion to go to are tmj specialist who ARE orthos because they will now how to finish cases (phase 2 treatment). In my opinion, why wouldn't you want to choose a specialist who is well trained in orthondontics as well as tmjd treatment? especially since a lot of patients going into phase 2 usually need braces after splint therapy. Chris, you are absolutely right. Children who have sleep apnea that have enlarged tonsils or adenoids definitely do exhibit signs of adhd and are often misdiagnosed by pediatricians for having adhd when they in fact have sleep apnea. Dentists are finally looking closely at sleep disorders and correlating them to hyperactivity in children, often sending them for a consult to an ENT to make sure they don't have a small airway from enlarged tonsils, etc.. , or from an under developed lower jaw like my daughter is correcting right now with her orthodonist. That can also close your airway off to an extent and cause sleep apnea. (also, darkening under the eyes, due to lack of oxygen) . You need to correct this in children early when they are still having a lot of growth and development with their bones in the jaw, face, so that later in life they don't need those horrendous surgeries like breaking your jaw and pulling it forward, which in some cases can cause tmj and chronic pain. So, I do agree that there are far too many orthos and dentists out there claiming that they can treat tmj effectively, in my opinion, if orthos are trained in Functional orthodontics and functional jaw appliances, and use all schools of thinking when looking at a tmj case, (neuromuscular dentistry, etc.) they will have the best chance of successfully treating tmj cases. The ones who do the same thing for every patient, and don't look at the whole picture or don't even listen to their clients on what has or hasn't worked in the past are the ones you want to stay clear from. Take care all.....J.